Alcohol, speeding, cell phones blamed for road carnage

The non-Governmen-tal Organisation, Citizens for a Better Trinidad and Tobago (CBTT), is blaming alcohol, speeding and cell phones for the continuous carnage on the nation’s roads. According to CBTT, the authorities have not done enough to address the problems, and as a result the loss of life and limbs continues. Head of CBTT, Harrack Balramsingh, pointed out that cell phones were causing some of the road accidents, especially among the youths. “You can see them speaking on the phone using one hand to do so and the other to drive,” he observed.

“Even more scandalous,” he added, “is the fact that text messages are made regularly by young motorists while driving, which causes them to take their eyes off the road.” He also pointed out that some motorists “are sourcing their e-mails on the cell phones which further disrupts their attention on the road.” According to Balramsingh “there may have been an oversight by governments in not passing legislation providing for breathalyser tests even though almost 44 years have passed since Indepen-dence.

Because of this oversight, he stated, “many people have been killed by drunken motorists on our roadways while many other victims must cope with serious injuries for the rest of their lives.” Balramsingh said, “It is amazing how long important measures take to be implemented in this country even if it involves the safety of lives.”